First Minister-I Accept Ruling On InfyRef2; Argues For Legal Changes

Scotland's First Minister Nicola Sturgeon delivering press conference following the UK Supreme Court judgement delivered earlier today, which ruled that the Scottish Parliament does not have the powers to hold a non-binding independence referendum without the approval of the UK Parliament in Westminster.

• Livestream: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LwuTp8za5R8
• Sturgeon: " I do respect and accept the judgement of the court...The routes we take must be lawful and democratic for independence to be achieved...Independence is not only desirable, it's essential...The court was not asked to decide whether there was a democratic mandate for a referendum"
• Sturgeon states that the current devolution settlement is "inconsistent with any reasonable notion of Scottish democracy", and that the ruling "raises profound & deeply uncomfortable questions about the basis & future of the UK as a voluntary partnership of nations".
• An independence referendum being granted under a Conservative gov't in Westminster remains a hugely unlikely prospect. The clearest route for a referendum is that the main opposition centre-left Labour Party falls short of a majority in the next election, and is reliant on pro-independence Scottish National Party (SNP) MPs to form a gov't. The price for the SNP would likely be a referendum.